Carlsbad's Puckett Elementary School rewarded for academic success

After receiving high honors for all of its hard work this year, Puckett Elementary School continues to be acknowledged for its success.

Larry Behrens, the Public Information Officer for the New Mexico Public Education Department said that the top performing schools in New Mexico have received financial rewards to use for textbooks or other educational materials. "We had an amount that we were allowed to give per student. Puckett Elemen-tary has over 270 students, and they're getting $13,161 to spend on instructional materials and new com-puter software."

Debra Beard, the principal at Puckett, was thrilled to receive this unexpected award. "I was very surprised that there was a monetary value placed on being a successful school," said Beard. "I think it's wonderful. It truly is."

Beard received the announcement letter from the Public Education Department last week, but she has not yet decided what her school will use the money for. "At the moment, I am still looking into the best way to spend this for our kids," said Beard.

But she and her staff still have some time to think about it. Beard reported that the grant money does not have to be used until June of 2014.

"One thing that really stands out about Puckett Elementary is that 86 percent of its students are in pov-erty," said Hannah Skandera, Secretary for the Public Edication Department. "But they're still saying they have high expectations for their kids. They made a commitment and they delivered on those high expectaions.

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